Fertilizer



NITED STATES Fries.

HERMANN ENDEMANN, OF BROOKLYN, NEIV YORK.

FERTI LIZER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 396,274, dated January 15, 1889. Application filed April5, 1888. $erial No. 269,663. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HERMANN ENDEMANN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Fertilizers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to fertilizers for agricultural purposes; and it consists in a fertilizer produced from the tobaccoplant, as hereinafter described.

In carrying out the invention I use chiefly the stems and waste port-ions of the tobaccoplant which are laid aside or rejected in the various manufactures of tobacco; but the whole plant can be made use of in the same manner.

I take about ten tons of tobacco stems and waste, and after moistening the same with water I cut itinto lengths of an inch, more or less. It is then crushed by any suitable means as, for example, by passing it between crushing-rollers. By moistening the tobacco before it is crushed I prevent it from becoming finely broken up and crumbled by the crushing operation, as would be the case if it were crushed while dry. The moistened condition of the tobacco also enables the crushing operation to be more effective in breaking and disintegrating the body or structure of the stems and waste, so that their fibers will be exposed to and be the more thoroughly acted upon by the acid in the subsequentoperation; but the moist-crushing of the tobacco may be omitted and the tobacco subjected to the action of the acid without moistening and crushing where saving of time in the extraction of the product is of no great importance,

and the tobacco may be crushed or ground dry if the preservation of the filer is not desired. The crushed stems and waste are next immersed in a hot-water solution of diluted mineral acid-by preference oil of vitriol-in a leaching-tank having a false perforated bottom, and below the false bottom a chamber with a discharge-pipe leading therefrom. I use in making the acid solution about from two hundred to four hundred pounds of oil of vitriol for about ten tons of dry tobacco stems and waste, according to the quality or condition of the tobacco, and water enough to steep thetobacco-say from about twenty to thirty tons of water for ten tons of tobacco stems or waste, weighed when dry. The to bacco subjected to the action of the acid solution until its soluble portions are dissolved out by the acid, which can be ascert ained by examining some of the tobaccostems, which must show a pretty uniform but lighter color than the natural color if the action of the acid is to be considered as finished. A few hours digestion will suffice to produce this result. Hot water is then allowed to flow into the top of the tank, and thereby theheavy solution or extract obtained from the tobacco is forced downwardthrough the false bottom into the chamber below it and thence upward through the discharge-pipe, which extends upward and thence outward at such a point below the surface of the liquid in the tank as to secure a flow of the extract through the pipe.

The extract obtained by leaching the tobacco with the above-mentioned acid solution contains the portions of the tobacco which are solublein said acid solution. This extract may be directly used as a manure; butit' it is necessary to transport it a considerable distance, whereby the expense of transportation may become an item of importance, the amount of water should be limited as much as possible. In order to do this I take so much of the liquid extract discharged from the dischargepipe as will be equal to the quantity of liquid necessary for the maceration of another mass of ten tons of dry tobacco stems and waste, and rc-enforce the acid strength by the addition of a like quantity of oil of vitriol, heat it, and use it for the treatment of such OllllBl'dllEtSS of ten tons of tobacco in a like tank. This may be repeated by the use of additional similar tanks connected with those already mentioned, each tank standing sufficiently lower than the preceding one to insure discharge from one to the other, while the lowest one may be connected to the highest one by means of a pump.

Care is taken, whenever the fibrous residuum of the tobacco is to be put to further usesas, for instance, the manufacture of paper therefromthat the concentration of the liquor by these means is not carried to such an extent that the leaching will fail to remove from the tobacco fibers those substances which it is desired to dissolve out of the tobacco by means of the acid solution. hen it is not desired to put the fibrous residuum to further use, the concentration of the liquor can be carried further without thereby departing from my invention, and a considerablylarger proportion of oil of vitriol or acid than that above given may then be employed. If further concentration is required, this is obtained by evaporation.

In order to retain during concentration by evaporation to dryn the free volatile acids,

especially the nitric acid, it is necessary to add to the extract a substance of basic character. For this purpose I add thereto, by preference, a quantity of ground bones or other basic phosphates equal to about five per cent, by weight, of the tobacco (when dry) used in the operation. By thistreatment the free acid present in the extract, especially nitric acid, is neutralized, and the extract is correspondingly enriched in nitrogen and phosphoric acid. These additions can be made, also, in case that the extract is to be kept in the liquid state, since the extract contains sufficient acid to convert basic into neutral and acid phosphates. If, however, the quantity of oil of vitriol or acid employed is greater than the proportions above stated namely, about two hundred to four hundred pounds thereof to about ten tons of dry tobacco stems and wastethe quantity of bones or basic phosphates should also be proportionally increased.

By the above treatment and method I produce from about one hundred pounds of dry tobacco stems and waste about thirty-five to fifty pounds of dry fertilizer or manure or a correspondingly larger quantity of liquid manure, the quantity of either depending upon the quality of the stems or waste-as, for instance, whether they are rich or poor in soluble materials. I

The manure product is a dark brown liq uid of agreeable odor when the evaporation is not continued to the end, and when the evaporation is continued to dryness the product is a brown mass, which can be reduced to a powder by grinding.

The product constitutes a valuable fertilizer, which can be employed for agricultural purposes in the manner liquid manurcs are usually employed, or as a powder. It contains a large percentage of potash, ammoniacal compounds, nitrates, and phosphates.

\Yhen slightly warmed with a solution of caustic soda, the product develops the characteristic odor of dry tobacco-leaf. 'The larger part of it is quite soluble in acidulated water. It is free from cellulose.

The product contains the salts of the mineral acid which is used in the process.

\Vh ere'it is not desired to preserve the fiber of the tobacco of any considerable length the moistening and cutting of the tobacco may be dispensed with, and the tobacco can be put through the crushing-machine in a dry state preparatory to the treatment with the acid solution.

\Vhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

- As a new article of manufacture, the abovem entioned fertilizer or product produced from tobacco, having the characteristics that it is of a brown color, that the larger part of it is soluble in acidulated water, that when warmed. with a solution of caustic soda it develops the characteristic odor of dry tobaccoleaf, and that it is free from cellulose and contains salts of the mineral acid used in making the product.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

. H. ENDEMANN. [L. s]

lVitnesses:

W. C. HAUFF,

E. F. KASTENHUBER. 

